Wings and Things
by Rinean
Summary: When Elisa Maza's cousin comes to stay with her in New York, things get a little bit weird for the newcomer after she meets the Gargoyles. OC/Brooklyn. Set in present day rather than mid-nineties. Takes place after "The Journey". cuz the rest suck.
1. New York, New York

**Note from the author:** I wish I owned Gargoyles, but I was only nine years old at the time it was on the air. It belongs to Disney, the damn licensing pimps who took away our comic book. (cries over SLG Gargoyles series death) Also, I've taken the liberty of changing the time frame of the series; rather than the mid-nineties, everything took place present day, which equals the gargoyles waking up in 2007, not 1994. Okay? Okay.

The only thing in this I own is the main character, Riley Maza. Oh, and some of the other characters you don't recognize. :)

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**Chapter One**

**New York, New York**

The city was bustling with even more people than I had expected, I realized as I watched the buildings and pedestrians go by outside of my taxi's window. I had never been to New York before, despite all the invitations I'd gotten from my cousin, Elisa, to come stay with her. Now work had brought me, Riley Maza, to Manhattan.

The taxi stopped in front of Elisa's apartment building, and I paid the driver my fare and gathered my few things out of the trunk. I stared up at the tall building for a moment, then walked through the door, bag clutched to my side. I was thankful that Elisa was letting me stay with her until I found a place of my own. I headed up to the sixteenth floor in the elevator, then found her apartment quickly. I knocked on the door, praying that our meeting after a long seven years wouldn't be too awkward.

The door swung open and then I was pulled into a hug by Elisa. "Wow, you look great," she said, touching one of the streaks of pink I had running through my hair. I'm about 5'9", half Native American and half Caucasian, with shoulder-length choppy black hair. "To think, the last time I saw you, you were sixteen and had braces," she laughed.

"You're the same as ever," I replied, a smile on my lips.

We talked as she helped me get settled into her guest room, catching up and telling each other about our lives. She told me about how she had moved into this apartment only a few months ago, after she had been attacked at her old one. Guess stuff like that can happen if you're a cop. I told her about my ex-boyfriend back in Phoenix cheating on me. I mentioned a crazy news story I'd heard in the cab on the drive from the airport.

"So there's people in the city who actually believe that there's real live gargoyles flying around?" I asked, sitting on the bed after clearing away the last of my clothes.

"Er... Yeah," she said, not looking directly at me. "Look, I need to tell you about something that may come as a shock-"

"Hey, Elisa? You home?" a male voice called from out in the living room.

Elisa glanced at her watch. "Sunset already passed?" she said, looking alarmed.

"Lis, who is that?" I asked tentatively.

"Uh, some friends I was going to ease you into meeting," she answered. "Wait a sec, Broadway!" she called to the other room. "Promise you won't scream?"

"Huh?!" Scream at what?

"Okay, let's go meet my friends," she said, grabbing my wrist and pulling me off the bed. "Let's get the freak out over with."

I froze in the bedroom doorway. There were five very large creatures standing about the room. They each had different colored skin, except the largest male and the only female among them. Red, blue, green, and purple... And then I noticed the wings. "Wha..." was all I could say.

"Everyone, this is my cousin Riley I told you was coming today," Elisa said to them. "Riley, I'd like you to meet Goliath-" she pointed at the large purple one - "his daughter Angela-" the purple female waved - "Broadway," the blue one, "Lexington," the small green one with wings under his arms instead of on his back, "and Brooklyn," the red one with a beak. He waved and said, "Yo."

Not knowing what else to do, I waved vaguely at them. Then I fainted.

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Sorry it's so short, but I'm uploading chapter two at the same time, so get over it and leave a review already! Puck will hug you if you do!

Puck: I will?

Me: Yes.

Puck: Says who?

Me: says the person who pulled a Demona on your ass and summoned you here.

Puck: ........Damn.


	2. Life Sucks, Then You Fly

**Chapter Two**

**Life Sucks, Then You ****Fly**

Things that have made my life hell:

1. My parents died when I was seventeen in a car crash that left them so horribly mangled they had to use their vehicle registration to identify them.

2. My ex-fiancee three years ago went to Las Vegas with his buddies and ended up marrying a stripper named Candy.

3. Said ex-fiancee is still happily married and expecting their second kid.

4. I walked in on my latest ex having a foursome with one girl and two other guys. Ew.

5. I just met a bunch of mythological creatures in Elisa's living room.

Gargoyles? Seriously?

I opened my eyes to see I had been carried back into my room and laid on my bed. Elisa was sitting next to me. "Please tell me that there were not a bunch of gargoyles in your apartment," I groaned.

"I'd be lying if I said that," she replied. "I have to tell you, you took the news worse than when my parents found out that Derek wasn't human anymore," Elisa said.

"Whaaaaat?" I said loudly.

"Jalepeña, there's a lot to tell you."

Dear God, what was going on? I knew that Elisa had gone missing for a while just months ago, her mom had called every relative she knew to see if they'd heard from her, and of course that list had included me. Did that "trip" have anything to do with the gargoyles?

"Okay, start with the beginning."

We sat there for a couple hours as she told me everything, about David Xanatos, Anton Sevarius, the mutates that were the result of his experiments, clones of the gargoyles that were led by one named Thailog who was presumed dead, the Labyrinth, Avalon and its master Oberon...

I stared at her as she talked, jaw droping milimeter by milimeter. Her last story was the real reason she had moved from the old apartment - it just wasn't safe anymore after a new enemy, the Quarrymen, had attacked her and Goliath there.

"Do you believe any of this?" she asked afterward.

"I really met them earlier, right?"

"Yep."

"I believe you."

"Are you going to faint if we go out there and two of them are still here?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

"I'll try not to."

We walked out to the living room, where the large one, Goliath, and the red one were sitting on the sofa watching late night talk shows. Elisa's cat, Cagney, was curled up in Goliath's lap as he stroked it gently. The red one, whose name I couldn't remember, gave me a smile. "Hi," he said, giving me a little wave again. "Uh, I'd stand up, but this couch isn't quite big enough for Goliath to sit next to - well - anyone. I'm pinned."

I laughed nervously and followed Elisa into the kitchen. "What the hell am I supposed to do?" I growled under my breath at her.

"Try talking to them," Elisa answered, giving me a "duh" face.

I glanced back at them over my shoulder. "That one - Goliath? - is freaking huge. And scary."

"Yeah," Elisa said with a chuckle. "But he's just a big sweetie." I noticed her expression as she said "sweetie." Oh my. My cousin's in love with a gargoyle. Which, even though they sat in the living room, I still wasn't totally convinced they were real.

"Uh, Goliath?" I heard the red one say. "I can't breathe."

"Sorry," Goliath replied, and he squeezed over on the sofa as far as he could to let the smaller gargoyle up. He tentatively approached the entryway to the kitchen.

"So whatcha cookin'?" the red one asked Elisa.

"Spaghetti," Elisa answered. "Brooklyn, why don't you show Riley the sights?"

"Excuse me?" I said in a high pitched tone.

Brooklyn looked at me sheepishly. "I don't know, Elisa. She looks like she might have an aneurism if I even try to touch her."

Elisa gave me a look that plainly said "you can trust these guys." "Does showing me the city involve being hundreds of feet in the air and the possibility of falling to my death?"

"Well aren't you optimistic," Brooklyn said with a laugh. "I won't drop you. I'm much stronger than I look."

"Yeah, that makes me feel better," I said, rolling my eyes.

"You guys have some things in common," Elisa offered. "Like Brooklyn reads your new comic book religiously every month."

"And having you tell her that isn't embarrassing in the slightest," Brooklyn groaned.

"It's not like I write it..." I said, embarrassed as well, but surprisingly flattered. "I'm just the artist..."

"But you're an amazing artist! You're like, like the Michelangelo of comic books, only a girl!" Brooklyn said. I would never have pegged a gargoyle as being a comic nerd like myself.

"You read Nights of Fury too?" I asked him.

"Yeah, I can't believe that Fury turned out to be Angel's brother!" Brooklyn exclaimed, a big smile on his face. Oh yeah, he's a nerd. Not many people even know what Nights of Fury is.

"Okay, okay, you're getting nerd all over my kitchen," Elisa laughed. "Go chat elsewhere." She shooed us out of the room with her ladel.

"So..." Brooklyn said shyly. "The offer's still on the table. You know, go see the sights, fly around the city a bit..."

"Um..." Was he blushing? I mean, as much as was possible, since he was red in the first place. Well, it did seem like I was an idol of his. Celebrity artist and all that. "Yeah," I said, finally making up my mind. "Yeah, let's go."

We walked over to the balcony, the arcadia door of which Elisa left open for the breeze. Suddenly Brooklyn scooped me up in his arms; startled, I threw my arms around his neck. He gave a chuckle, then leapt up to the wall, thrusting out his wings, which had been clasped around his shoulders. Then he jumped. I willed myself not to scream.

We stopped and sat on the edge of a building in Times Square. "That was so awesome!" I said above the noise from below. I couldn't stop grinning; the flight here had been amazing, feeling all my stress leave through the air that passed us. I stared down at all the tourists and bright lights, my eyes coming to rest on the large Coca-Cola sign.

"You almost pissed yourself, didn't you," Brooklyn said with a snicker. I punched him in the arm. "Oh yeah, that hurt." He rolled his eyes.

I let out a deep sigh. "I never would have thought I'd be comfortable around something I believed was just architecture an hour ago."

He raised a hairless eyebrow at me. I glared at him; I envied people who could raise one eyebrow, and now gargoyles are doing it to me. "Some_thing_?"

"Yes, you are now my own personal airplane."

"Oh ha ha."

* * *

Reviews make Puck happy!

Puck: No, they make_ you_ happy.

Me: Shut up and make with the happy dances and hugs.

Puck: *sigh*


	3. Fall Out

**Chapter Three**

**Fall Out**

I learned about the different gargoyles quickly. Goliath really was a sweetie, just like Elisa had said, and he was extremely protective of his clan (and Elisa). His daughter, Angela, was the result of his first love with Demona, who had come to hate humans and tried to destroy them multiple times. Angela was the polar oposite; she was just like her father. She also seemed to be falling for Broadway, the blue gargoyle with an apetite the size of Russia. Then there was Hudson, the eldest, who had been the clan leader before Goliath. The small green one was Lexington, and he had become obsessed with every piece of technology he could get his hands on. They also had a dog, kind of; Bronx, who was as loving as any other dog.

Brooklyn was like my best friend, especially since I hadn't made any human friends yet. I wasn't due to start work for a few days, so I spent all my time with Elisa during the day, and the gargoyles at night. The New York Comic Convention was to be my first day of work in the city, and Brooklyn was, as usual, geeking out about all the comics I'd be able to get my hands on. "The collector's edition of Blood and Blades, the special episode zero issue of Crash Kincade, the pin-up cover issue of Wonderhell-"

I laughed and shut his beak with both hands. "I think by now I've got your shopping list memorized, O Great Comic Collector."

"So where are we going tonight?" Brooklyn asked me, sitting beside me on my bed. We'd made it a ritual to go somewhere in the city every night, usually because he still had to go on patrol with the clan. He always patrolled wherever I wanted to visit, and he'd stopped three muggings since we'd started going out.

Wait. Going out? Totally not what I meant.

Anyway...

"Madison Square Garden?" I asked, looking up from my sketch of Ceres, a character from my series, Gods of Gaia.

"The roof or inside?"

I was taken aback for a moment. "You can get inside?"

"Uh, yeah, I've seen fourteen concerts there this year," he answered with a "duh" face. Damn, there's that eyebrow.

"I've never asked before, but do you steal all these comics too?" I wondered.

"Not exactly," he said, looking sheepish. "We take money from the crooks we catch, as long as it wasn't like a bank robber or something. Me and Lex break into the comic book store and take what we want, but we leave the money to pay for it behind."

I stared at him, then burst into laughter. "What's so funny?" he asked.

"Just imagining how the owner of the shop feels every time it happens," I answered. "Think he's figured it out by now? That you're a gargoyle?"

"Probably, but he doesn't seem to care much, since he hasn't upped the security at all," Brooklyn shrugged.

"Hey, I've just had a thought," I said suddenly, sitting upright.

"You shouldn't do that, you'll hurt yourself," he retorted.

"Ha freaking ha," I said with a roll of my eyes. "What if you pretended to be a person in a gargoyle costume and come to the convention with me?"

"Say what?" Brooklyn said with an odd look on his face. "Yeah, right."

"No, really! Fans dress up for conventions all the time, especially comic and anime cons," I explained. "No one would even think you were real, I'd imagine tons of people are going to be dressed as gargoyles because of the news stories-"

"You're really serious?" Brooklyn asked.

"Like a heart attack. That would get you two hours each night before the hall closes at ten o' clock," I said, watching his grin get bigger and biggger. "That's six, count 'em six, hours of comic geek goodness."

He suddenly jumped up and picked me up in one swift movement, swinging me about before hugging me excitedly. I felt myself redden as he put my feet back on the ground, his hands on my waist, my hands on his shoulders. After a long moment, I suddenly realized this and pulled back with a soft "ahem."

"So, uh... Still wanna go to MSG?" Brooklyn asked, still looking a little flushed as well.

"Yeah, definately," I answered, and we walked to the window and pushed it open. He picked me up again, the usual way we flew around, but for some reason I blushed once more. What's the matter with me?

We snuck into the arena through an air vent and settled up in the rafters to watch the remaining half of a concert. It took me a moment to realize who was on the stage. "Oh. My. God."

Brooklyn looked at me, eyebrow raised yet again, even though he knew I hated that. "You like these guys?"

"Uh, who doesn't?" I asked him "Fall Out Boy is amazing!"

"Yeah, I'm more of a Coheed and Cambria fan," Brooklyn said haughtily.

Suddenly a harsh voice came from behind us, "So the rumors about gargoyles sneaking in here were true."

We both turned and Brooklyn's eyes immediately started to glow white; a man stood behind us, his head covered with a hood and holding a large hammer over his head. Quarryman!

He took a swing at Brooklyn, who jumped at him and tackled him, knocking the hammer from his grasp. It slid to a stop near the edge of the rafters. I grabbed it to defend myself while the masked man and Brooklyn wrestled to the floor. The Quarryman let fly a well aimed kick to Brooklyn's head, and he went out. I let out a gasp that was impossible to hear over the sounds of the concert below. Then the man rounded on me.

"A traitor to your own species, little girl," he growled at me. I backed away as far as I could, nearly slipping off of the walkway. Then he swung at me.

I slipped off of the rafter with a startled yell, dropping the hammer back to the walkway floor. Then I heard a roar and there were arms around me; Brooklyn had woken and glided down to save me. Unfortunately there was no current of air to change course on, so the only place he could go was forward and onto the stage.

Panic ensued. Thousands of people screaming in unison, most of them high-pitched teenage girls, and the sound of them running away. Meanwhile, at least twenty security officers ran onto the stage and pointed guns at Brooklyn while the members of Fall Out Boy were ushered away to safety. "What about the girl?" I heard one of them shout.

Brooklyn set me down on my feet slowly. "Go on."

"No!" I said, then stood in front of him, my arms spread wide. "Don't hurt him!"

Then everything around us froze. The people in the audience in the midst of running, the security guards, and Patrick Stump's startled face all stoped mid-motion. "What the hell-"

A white whirlwind appeared before Brooklyn and I, and Brooklyn let out a groan. "Oh great."

I looked at him curiously, then watched as the miniature tornado came to a stop. The whirlwind revealed itself to be a young man, a teenager at most, with shockingly white hair that reached to his lower back. I gasped when I noticed his pointed ears. He was holding a baby, not quite a year old, who was smiling and watching everything with glee.

"And that, Alexander, is how you perform a freezing charm," the elf exclaimed brightly. He turned his attentions to Brooklyn and myself. "You spoiled my lessons you know," he said. "I was going to teach Alex about voice swapping, but you two beat me to the chaos."

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Brooklyn said with a roll of his eyes. "But thanks for saving our asses."

"You're just lucky I arrived and started my lesson before you became target practice," the elf grinned impishly and pushed a frozen guard, making him teeter back and forth.

"Who are you?" I asked suddenly.

"Why, did your dear cousin fail to mention me in her tales of gargoyles and magic?"

I suddenly understood who he was. "Puck."

"The one and only," he said, and bowed ridiculously. He then looked at the baby. "Now, Alex, can you show me what you remember about time reversal?"

Brooklyn and I made our way to the roof a few minutes later, after watching everything and everyone in the arena return to where they had been before the Quarryman had so rudely jumped us. We had been quiet the whole tedious climb up the stairs. I said as I climbed up into Brooklyn's arms, "I should just start getting used to this crap, right?"

"Yeah, probably."

* * *

Puck: Of course, I had to swoop in and save the day.

Me: ...And?

Puck: Do I still have to give hugs to reviewers?

Me: Do you still have a chain wrapped around you?

Puck: ........... yes.

Me: There you go then.

Review?


	4. Unconventional

**Chapter Four**

**Unconventional**

"Dammit, stay still!"

"That tickles!" Brooklyn retorted, glaring down at me. I glared back at him just as harshly.

I quickly turned my glare to Broadway, Lexington, and Elisa, who had gathered on the sofa for the amusement of watching Brooklyn get ready for the convention. I'd left the company booth at sunset to help Brooklyn with his "costume," glueing thread onto his body to mimic seams of fabric. Elisa had made popcorn.

"There, done," I said, putting the brush back in the tub of skin glue and closing it tight. "Now let's go, or my boss is going to kill me for being gone so long."

"Aww," Elisa said sarcastically. "Now what are we supposed to do for fun?"

"There's this new thing called a 'television,'" I quipped, walking with Brooklyn to the balcony. We took off a moment later and headed to the convention center.

I handed Brooklyn his badge that I'd picked up earlier that day when we landed on a rooftop about a block away. "Okay, remember not to move your tail much, since it's supposed to be fake," I reminded him as we walked aalong the street.

"Yes, Mother," he said with a grin. He was so excited to be going tonight, it radiated off of him.

We split up after I introduced him to my new coworkers, him going shopping at the various booths, and me staying at the company booth, signing the obligatory autograph. What happened only a few minutes later smacked me upside the head with a cast iron skillet. No, not literally.

The most gorgeous man I'd ever seen walked up to the booth. "Hi," I breathed.

"You're Riley Maza?" he asked.

"Guilty as charged," I said.

"You're much more... Female than I thought," he said with nervous laughter.

"Um... Thanks?" I giggled back.

"Can you sign this for me?" he asked, producing one of my first comics from the company.

I stared up at him, startled. "Wow, talk about rare," I said. "There's only been 500 copies of this printed - and I have six of them. Wow." I repeated.

"This is one of my favorites," he said. "I might be a big nerd for saying this, but I own at least one copy of every issue you've ever had printed. And the whole time I thought you were a man."

"Well, let me sign that for you," I said, now considerably giggly. I reached out for the comic and my fingers brushed against his. I pulled back in shock, his fingers were like ice. Trying to smooth out the moment, I uncapped my Sharpie. "To..."

"Michael Wallace," he said.

I glanced up at him a second before signing. "Your whole name?"

"That's more flirtation than autograph request," he said with an embarrassed chuckle. Then he slid me a scrap of paper from his pocket that he had written his number down on. "Thanks," he said, taking his comic and walking away.

"Hey, Riley," John Milke, the writer of my series, said with laughter. "More signing, less drooling."

At the end of the night, Brooklyn was laden with three goodie bags, one filled with the stuff he bought, the other two with free swag, when he came back to the booth at the end of the night. "I think we'll need a taxi," he mumbled to me.

"How about a free ride?" Elisa said as she walked through the emptying hall towards us. "Figured he'd buy too much stuff to get home," she said.

"Thanks!" I said for the both of us. I turned to grab my backpack so we could leave, and I froze when I saw the guy - Michael - at the end of our row. He wasn't looking back at me, so it gave me the perfect opportunity to check him out on the sly.

Brooklyn started sniffing the air, making John-the-writer stare at him funny. "Knock it off, Brook," I said.

"I smell... Something that isn't right." He sniffed again, this time at least attempting to disguse it by rubbing his nose a bit. "I smell... Death."

"Like rotting flesh death or a recent murder death?" Elisa asked, getting her serious face on.

"No... Just the sense of... Not living." Brooklyn shook his head. "I can't explain it. It doesn't smell like a body. More like... Someone that hangs around in a graveyard too much."

"Yeah... And what could smell like that?" I asked.

Brooklyn looked at me. "Something on you has the scent on it."

"What? What could I have that - Hey!"

Brooklyn started sticking his fingers in my pockets. Good thing I wasn't holding any change in them, because his talons ripped right through the front two and the coins would have slid right into my shoes. I smacked his hand away when he reached for the back. He still got he was looking for. He held up the little scrap of paper. "Ick," he said, then handed it back. "Whoever gave that to you, this Michael," he growled the name slightly, "He's tainted with death."

* * *

Puck: Hey, I'm not in this chapter!

Me: There wasn't any need for you at a comic book convention. And who wants Owen Burnett sucking the life out of a comic con?

Puck: You know how much I hate you right now?

Me: Aww, but I love you! *gives kisses*

Puck: Just review the story already!


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